Stitch Manor
by MrsCatherineWinter
Summary: Evangeline has been at Stitch Manor for three days now - and it is terrible! But to her delight a worrying Mr Brown comes to rescue her...
_First of all, I have to admit that I am not a native speaker, so there might be a few mistakes, but if you were so kind as to write me a message to tell me of them, I would immediately correct them._

 _Disclaimer: All figures belong to Universal Pictures/Christianna Brand and I don't earn my money with these stories._

 **Stitch Manor**

Evangeline was sitting on her bed in her new room. It was a big room and very luxurious but still Evangeline didn't like it. It didn't feel like home. _Yet, maybe_ , she hoped, for she has been living in Stitch Manor for only three days now.

She sighed heavily. She already missed them: Simon, Tora, Lily, Eric, Chrissie, Sebastian, Aggy – and Mr Brown, of course. Even Cook and Nanny McPhee. They all were kind to her and seemed to like her, whereas Aunt Adelaide, or Lady Stitch as she was supposed to say, was mean and annoying and seemed to believe her stupid. Which she was, but still…

 _Don't give up_ , she told herself all the time. _Remember why you're here_. She was there to educate herself that maybe one day Mr Brown would like her, maybe even love her…

But no, that dream was over now… Aunt Adelaide had told her that she had ordered Mr Brown to find a new wife within this month… There was no way that Evangeline could be educated enough in less than a month to impress him – but still she had to try! Otherwise she would be completely hopeless.

 _Oh, Mr Brown…_

Suddenly someone knocked on the door and when she had called "Come in" it was one of the servants.

"A Mr Brown for you, Madam" he announced formally.

 _WHAT?!_

"Er, yes, thank you" she replied and hastily titivated her hair a bit.

The next moment the servant was gone and Mr Brown stood in her room. He had a worried expression on his face.

"Mr Brown!" she exclaimed. "Did something happen?"

Now he looked confused. "N-no. Why do you ask?"

"Well, I thought that you came because something did happen with the children or something like that."

"Good grief. No. The children are alright." He seemed to want to say more but obviously couldn't, for he turned to the window and looked out of it into the beautiful garden.

Evangeline waited for a moment but he remained silent. "Mr Brown?" she finally asked cautiously.

He didn't move at all. He just kept on starring out of the window.

"Why are you here?"

Then Mr Brown sighed and turned to her. "I am here because of you."

"Me?!"

"Nanny McPhee assured me that you were alright and that you didn't want to leave but sacrificed yourself on Simon's account to save Chrissie, but I needed to check that. That's why I'm here now." He looked rather distressed.

"What do you want to check? That I am alright or that I am here to save Chrissie?"

"Both."

"Well, these two pieces hang together" she explained. "Of course, Lady Stitch is not a very agreeable person but if my being here can help Chrissie and the other children and on top of that I am able to educate myself here, why shouldn't I do that?"

"Yes, why indeed" he murmured. Louder and a bit confused he asked: "Why do you want to educate yourself?"

"Well, um…"

"I mean of course that's something good. But why here?"

"To save your children!"

"I know… I'm sorry… And I never even thanked you…"

"You don't have to…"

"No." He looked her firmly in the eye. "Thank you, Evangeline. I will never forget what you did for us."

Turning slightly red she smiled. "I would do everything for you."

He smiled back at her. Then his gaze turned worried again. "So you are alright?"

"They're giving me food if you mean that."

"Then let me ask you: Are you happy?"

She gulped. She couldn't possible tell him! "Yes" she finally managed to say.

"Evangeline" he softly spoke.

"Yes?" That was the moment she noticed that she cried. Quickly she turned away so that he couldn't see this embarrassment. "I'm sorry" she said.

"You don't have to be sorry" he replied and gave her his handkerchief.

"I never wanted you to know" she whispered while whishing her tears away but it was no use – the smell of the handkerchief, his smell, made it all worse. "I mean I've been only here for three days, maybe it'll turn all better in a few days."

With caution he took her shoulders and turned her so that she had to face him. "It won't" he said.

"That's not very nice to say!" she scolded.

"But that doesn't mean that you will keep on suffering."

"What do you mean?" she asked confused.

"Evangeline" he said. "Do you want to come back?"

"More than anything in the world. But I can't – and you know that! So why do you even ask me that!" More tears streamed over her cheeks.

"Because then I will make it happen."

"What?"

"You will not suffer! I am not going to let this happen anymore."

"Oh Mr Brown!" she exclaimed and flung her arms around his neck blustery.

He hugged her back tightly. "My dear Evangeline."

"But what about Chrissie? Or the other girls?" she then wanted to know. "Doesn't Lady Stitch want to have one of your daughters with her?"

"I will talk to her. Please pack your things so that we can leave the moment I am finished with this talk."

"Righto, Mr Brown" she smiled.

He returned the smile and went to the door.

"Be careful!" she called after him. "She's vicious."

"I know" he said seriously. "Thank you, Evangeline."

When he was out of sight she sighed and then turned to happily pack the few things she had. _He came to rescue me_ , she thought the whole time. _He cares about me!_

Having packed Evangeline sat on her bed again and waited nervously. What if Aunt Adelaide would stop the allowance because she was so angry at Mr Brown's requests? And what if she, Evangeline, was to be doomed to stay here at Stitch Manor for all time? Or worse she was replaced by Tora, Lily or Chrissie?!

She had quite some time to dwell on her horrible thoughts and became more and more afraid with every minute. But suddenly someone shortly knocked on the door and one second later Mr Brown's head was to be seen in the door.

"You're free" he grinned.

Immediately he took her bag and they left Stitch Manor. At the front gate a carriage was waiting for them.

"I thought this was better than walking the 20 miles" he explained.

"But isn't renting a carriage very expensive!"

He shrugged his shoulders. "It's worth it." He then looked at her sternly and said: "Evangeline, this is your last chance to say that you want to stay. I will not be angry with you if you do."

"Oh no, Mr Brown, I definitely want to return to you."

"Then that's settled." He took her hand so that he could help her into the carriage. "Milady" he said with a bow.

In that moment she really felt like a lady and immediately asked herself if she didn't have to educate herself in the end.

Mr Brown sat next to her and the carriage started driving away from this terrible household and back to the place she considered her home.

She asked about the children and Cook and Nanny McPhee so they didn't have to remain silent and he obliged by telling her that they were all fine.

"And…", she asked after a while, "did you already manage to get a new wife?"

He looked at her startled. "How do you know?"

"Lady Stitch told me of her condition for the allowance yesterday."

He sighed depressed and looked out of the window again. "No, I didn't."

"Is there really no one?"

"Well, there is someone who would marry me…" (Evangeline's heart raced as she thought: _I would marry you at once!_ ), "… but I don't even like her." (and then dropped disappointed).

"Why don't you like her?" she managed to ask although her voice sounded rather weak with fear. Because of her lack of education? Because of her position?

Mr Brown didn't seem to notice. "She's awful. She's ugly, stupid and when we buried her latest husband last year she immediately looked for husband number four – which was me…"

 _He's not talking about me_ , she realised happily.

"It's just impossible to find a new wife in a month!" he then exclaimed angrily.

"Yes… impossible" she said and looked at the window of her side trying to hide her disappointed and sad emotions.

She was deep lost in thoughts when she suddenly felt something at her hand that laid on the space between her and Mr Brown. When she looked at it – it was his fingers that slightly brushed hers. She peered at him but he kept on looking out of the window unmoved. _Does he do it unconsciously, without even noticing that he touches me right now?_ , she thought irritated by his behaviour.

For a moment she continued to stare at their hands so close to each other. It looked rather wonderful. Then she looked again out of the window and brought her hand even closer to his so that they now touched the whole time.

He didn't retrieve his hand but instead just took hers.

She stared at him in disbelief – this couldn't be real, could it?

But he just looked at her and smiled wider and wider with every second she didn't slap him and told him to leave her in peace.

And only a few seconds later Evangeline was smiling, too, as she realised that he did like her very much.

"Evangeline?" he suddenly spoke and looked her in the eye.

"Yes?" she gulped with growing excitement. _What will he say?_

"These past days taught me how much I like you. Only the thought that Aunt Adelaide could be mean to you tormented me like only a few things in life ever could. I realised then that I love you. I think I have been loving you for quite some time now but never noticed it before. But now I did and still do. I love you, Evangeline, and I am hoping that these feelings are returned in some way. I know I'm only a mortician and rather old but maybe that doesn't bother you…" He looked at her with a little smile that showed at lot of vulnerability that she never had seen in his face before.

Although she was flattered by his confession and wanted to return the favour instantly there were two things she needed to clarify first. "But I'm uneducated and your scullery maid."

"It doesn't matter to me. And I can help you to learn reading if you like."

"And what about… Mrs Brown?"

His gaze saddened and he answered quietly: "She will always be a part of me but she is dead. She will never make me happy again like she used to because she can't. But you can."

"I can't be her" she quickly said but he replied at once:

"No, you misunderstand me. I don't want you to be her. I want you to be you. I love you because of how you are. You are not at all like her, believe me, but that doesn't make my love to you less strong than the love I felt for her and kind of still feel inside me."

Evangeline thought about that for a while before she really understood what he meant and smiled happily at him.

"Does this mean you like me, too?" he wanted to know with an almost scared expression.

She shook her head and laughed: "I don't like you – I love you."

"Will you then do me the honour of becoming my wife?" he proposed with a loveliest smile.

Her eyes widened, tears were beginning to swim in her eyes as she realised what was happening here. "Y-yes, C-cedric" she stammered. It was strange to use his first name but given the circumstances it would have been even more strange to say _Mr Brown_ , wouldn't it?

He then moved closer to her and hugged her.

She cuddled herself into his arms and decided that this was the happiest moment in her entire life.

THE END.


End file.
